After I played with Chatterpix for a while, the original title of this post had to be changed just a bit.
Don't misunderstand me ... kids will LOVE Chatterpix. Adults will too. It's simple, it's fun, and there are all sorts of ways you can use it in the classroom.
Chatterpix from Duck Duck Moose (how cute is that?!?!) is available for FREE in the app store. It's easy ... Snap a picture or use one from your gallery, draw a mouth, then record up to 30 seconds of audio. When you're finished, save your video to your camera roll. You can then send it via email, post it to YouTube, Facebook, or Vimeo.
Check out this short video to see how easy it is to create your own talking pictures.
Remember that you can make anything talk with Chatterpix - a book cover, a picture of a famous person, or the students themselves! How can you use it in your classroom?
It's Friday ... time to share more of my favorites! Click here to see the full-size Smore. (If you are reading this via email, you probably don't see anything below. Be sure to click here to see the content!)
It's Friday ... time to share more of my favorites! Click here to see the full-size Smore. (If you are reading this via email, you probably don't see anything below. Be sure to click here to see the content!)
Today, I'm using a fun Smore to publish a new Friday feature - Smore is a way to publish beautiful pages instantly! (And I think it kinda leaves you wanting smore, right?)
What a fun (and easy) way to publish a class or campus newsletter! (I think I smell a new blog post coming soon ... like Monday morning, maybe?)
ScootPad is a user-friendly, FREE (even ad-free!) site that delivers personalized math and reading "practices" that are tailored to each student's specific learning needs. It's advertised as "the ultimate way to master math and reading skills. Self-paced and personalized practice keeps kids engaged and challenged."
ScootPad is available on any browser, anytime ... this means students can work in the classroom or from home on a computer or any other internet-enabled device.
This Prezi (another one of my favorite tools!) is a quick tour of ScootPad:
Want to learn more?
This 2 minute overview walks you through all you need to know to get started with ScootPad:
Are you using ScootPad with your students? What are your thoughts?
Are you as obsessed with DrawSomething as everyone else is these days? If so, you might be interested in flipping through this infographic. (Wow ... what a clever way to display these mind-boggling numbers and facts!) Just use the arrows below to learn about the Metoric Rise of DrawSomething!
Do you have a video camera? I'm not talking about a big fancy-schmancy professional camera. I'm talking about a "Flip" style camera, or a digital camera that takes stills AND video, or even a video camera on your smart phone or iPod! Chances are, you have access to some sort of video camera and you may even have hours (or at least minutes) of video just sitting on the device itself or transferred over to your computer. What are you going to do with it? How will you share it with others?
Magistois a fun and easy way to create and share videos. You will need to register for a {free} account, then begin your first project. Just upload your video files, create a title, and select a soundtrack (they provide some music or you can select your own). Magisto somehow magically analyzes your video and selects the most important portions, adds professional transitions, effects, and highlights and ..... voilà ... you've got a professional looking video ready to share with your students, their parents, and the community!
Guess what? Last week, Magisto released a free iPhone app that allows you to create these professional videos right from your phone!
How can you think of ways to use Magisto with your students? I can't wait to hear some of the ideas and see some of the video projects! If you're an EM-S ISD teacher, don't forget that we have several small video cameras that can be checked out to teachers for classroom use. (Just contact your IT!)
Thank you Erin (Kleinspiration) for sharing this great tool! If you haven't checked out her blog yet, you're missing out!
I love my iPad. My only real complaint is that it doesn't use Flash, which is limiting. Although you can't actually LOAD flash on your iPad, this is a neat workaround. You will basically be using an app on your device to remote in to your computer. You will be able to browse the internet (watching Flash videos, playing Flash games, using Eduphoria!, etc. as well as access any of the programs or documents on your machine.)
All of this being said, I know our schools do not provide iPads, so this post is mainly for people who have their own personal devices.
It's really easy to set up and even easier to use ...
Download the Splashtop Remote app from the App store ($4.99 on 9/4/11)
Create a password for your computer (my iPad found my computer right away - you may need to enter your computer's ip address though)
Open the Splashtop App and follow the directions
Why am I so excited about this? What types of things can I do now that I couldn't do before? I'm so glad you asked! I can ...
use Chrome, Firefox, or Internet Explorer to surf the web rather than only relying on Safari.
use tabbed browsing - my favorite!
watch Flash videos online.
access files saved on my computer.
edit the files saved on my computer or create new documents (yep, in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, even Photoshop!)
access Eduphoria to check on class schedules, submit a help request, etc. (This is probably only important to employees in districts that use Eduphoria, but it's a big one to me!)
All of these things are well and good, but what about Educational Purposes? (This is a blog about using Technology in the Classroom!) Well, there are many great uses for a tool like this. To me, the biggest advantage to using Splashtop Remote with an iPhone or iPad or something similar is that it allows the teacher to use the computer without being tethered to the actual desktop machine.
You do have to be on wi-fi to use the application, which might be a problem in some spots in our schools.
Let me know if you download it and what you think!
I am an Instructional Technologist for Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD. The bulk of my classroom experience was in the elementary school - 5th, 6th, and ten years in 3rd grade. I also enjoyed two years in the middle school teaching Technology Applications to 8th graders. I currently work with teachers from seven (and a half) elementary schools to integrate technology into their classrooms. I love sharing new "techy" tools and sites with others, so I hope this blog can be a good resource for others.
Chatterpix from Duck Duck Moose (how cute is that?!?!) is available for FREE in the app store. It's easy ... Snap a picture or use one from your gallery, draw a mouth, then record up to 30 seconds of audio. When you're finished, save your video to your camera roll. You can then send it via email, post it to YouTube, Facebook, or Vimeo. 
